Love lit a fire
by foggynite
Summary: Post PRDT. TommyBilly slash. Jason watches his two friends over time.


Love lit a fire  
by foggynite

Fandom: Power Rangers  
Characters: Tommy/Billy, Jason  
Warning: SPOILERS for Mighty Morphin PR, PR Zeo, and PR Dinothunder. Also, be warned that I'm playing with new POV styles.  
Note: Written for "A Picture's Worth 1000 Words" challenge and to fill the request of aussiemouse (Dude, you have no idea how bad you stumped me here). Title from Rumi. Thanks to virtasquee for always being my Muse.

* * *

When you become the Gold Ranger, everything is so different at first-- new team, new villains, new powers-- that you don't notice right away. There are no lingering glances or secretive smiles. There's nothing overt; quite the opposite, in fact. You only notice because of what's not there.

They catch your attention because you grow concerned when you realize that Billy looks everyone else at the command in the eye except Tommy. Billy, with his hard-won confidence, doesn't make the avoidance obvious, but you've known him since middle school. He never holds Tommy's gaze, and you wonder why.

So you keep an eye on the two of them, wondering if it's all in your head. You worry that maybe they had a fight while you were gone. They'd grown closer before you left, had what you thought was a solid friendship, even though Billy was _always_ "buddy" to Tommy and not "bro."

You've always been more willing to show physical affection to your friends than either of them, but Tommy will give out reassuring touches, acting the part of team leader. Yet he hardly ever touches Billy. There doesn't seem to be any hostility between them, though, and it puzzles you, but other than just a gut feeling, you don't have anything to call either of them on.

Their awkwardness around each other has gone unnoticed by the rest of the team. You bring it up in passing one of the times you talk to Kimberly, slip it in between asking about her gymnastic training and her new boyfriend. She brushes the observation off at first, then grows quiet. When she changes the subject, you let it drop.

Her reaction makes you think that maybe it was something to do with her. You always suspected that Billy might have feelings for Kimberly, his first real friend, and Tommy had never hidden his interest in her. But Billy still takes the time to explain the circuitry of the command center to Tommy. Tommy still helps Billy with the Zord upgrades. They hang out together with the team at Ernie's, and joke around. They treat each other like teammates and friends.

There's just something… off.

Then, after you and the team rescue Tommy from Prince Gasket's brainwashing, you happen across the answer by chance. Alpha wants to run more tests on the Gold Zeo powers, so you turn down volleyball with Adam and Rocky to go back to the command center. When Alpha mentions Tommy and Billy are working on a new system, you track them down and find them leaning over an open control panel in a hallway, tools spread out around them.

There's nothing out of the ordinary, just two friends talking quietly, sitting next to each other on the floor with shoulders touching. Their conversation is punctuated with soft laughter as Billy points at a light with his screwdriver. The scene makes your observations lurch into place with startling clarity.

They separate quickly when you announce your presence. Neither of them will really meet your eyes, but all three of you joke like nothing's changed, even though you suspect everything has.

In the days following that afternoon, Tommy gets quiet for a while. He shows up at your place more often with movies or offers to train, and you wonder if he's working up his courage to talk to you. You want to ask him if it's true, because you may have known Billy forever, but Tommy's your best friend. The two of you have shared everything with each other, except maybe this.

You want to ask him if he knows what he's doing, if they're serious. You want to tell him you're cool with it, if this is a part of who he is.

There's a distance in Tommy's gaze that keeps you from prying, though. You figure he'll tell you when he's ready, but then he starts hanging out with Kat more, sitting closer, sharing fond glances with her, and then it's Billy's turn to be quiet, withdrawn.

You watch the space grow between them, and wonder if it was just a passing phase. You suspect it might have been deeper than that, a steady flame that left them both burned when they reached the end.

When Billy says, from galaxies away, "I finally found someone who understands me," you glance at Tommy.

But he just replies, "I knew you would, Billy," and smiles, adding his congratulations to the team's, so you think maybe you misread the entire situation.

Later that night, when Tommy shows up at your door with an action movie and a half-hearted grin, you let him in. When he starts crying silently halfway through, you know you haven't misread anything at all.

* * *

Years later, lounging on the patio in Tommy's back yard and nursing a beer, you remember how your friend looked that night-- The long hair hiding his face, the tears reflecting the light of the TV.

That memory was a different person from the guy with the goatee and glasses flipping burgers on the grill, joking with two of his former rangers. People are milling around the yard, and only some of them you recognize, but there's laughter and good times. You stretch your legs out and flirt with the beautiful redhead next to you while you wait for the guest of honor to arrive.

You know the moment he does, because Tommy focuses on the patio doors with a wide grin. Twisting around in your chair, you have to smile, too, because Billy is obviously surprised to find the house invaded. He looks questioningly at Tommy before stepping outside.

"Hey," you greet him, raising your bottle.

"Jason." He nods at your table. "Hayley."

Then Tommy is at his side, pressing a kiss to his temple.

"Welcome home."


End file.
